Holy Wine & Sleeping At The Blomidon Inn, A Sea Captain’s Mansion

Goodbye Truro, next stop is Wolfville, Nova Scotia. Situated in the Annapolis Valley this town dates back to its Acadian settlement in 1755 and is surrounded by lush farmland, Wolfville Harbour and some fabulous wineries. Oh, and it is also the site of the Grand-Pré National Historic Site, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Today my adventure takes me to visit a winery inside a Church and I check into my next home away from home, the Blomidon Inn. I’ll be drinking some Holy Wine and sleeping in an historic Sea Captain’s Mansion. Sounds like an average day to me. Hello, Wolfville.

Before I check into the Blomidon Inn I have to get to Wolfville and the Avondale Sky Winery is on the route so why not stop in.

The winery sits on one of the oldest vineyards in Nova Scotia, however in its current incarnation is one of the newest wineries in the province. Aside from the wine what makes it unique? The winery is housed in a reclaimed/rescued church from Walton, NS which is 42 kilometres away. That must have been something to watch as they moved the old St Matthews Church. It spent 24 hours riding the Bay Of Fundy tides, rising and falling over 43 feet.

Inside the winery, the church integrity has been honoured with stained glass windows at each end filtering the light the comes through. It is an open and spacious tasting room with plenty of wines to sample and a restaurant that is open from 11 till 4pm.

They have a full range of wines to sample which include white, red and my favourite summer sipper Rosé. I wasn’t familiar with many of the varieties they were offering, but it was a fun experience to try them and figure out which ones I liked. The five pictured below all got two thumbs up from me.

It is just a short drive to Wolfville and the Blomidon Inn. I drive by some of the sites I have on my schedule to check out tomorrow including Grand-Pré National Historic Site.

The Inn itself does not disappoint. It exudes quintessential 19th-century Victorian charm on the outside and English Manor comfort on the inside. It really is a former Sea Captain’s Victorian mansion.

The front foyer has two common sitting rooms for enjoyment but before I relax I must proceed to the end of the hallway to check in at the registration desk.

My room is located on the 2nd floor which has its own landing area complete with sitting area and a small library.

Inside my room, I am pleased to find out I have a 2 room set up. The outer room is my “living room” complete with TV, couch and lounge chair. The decor choices are very quaint and about what I’d expect. Love the wainscoting along the walls and the wallpaper.

My bedroom is fairly tight with just enough room to navigate around the bed on the way to the bathroom. There is a TV mounted high so I can watch TV in bed if I want to but with a comfy living room 2 feet away why bother.

There is plenty to see and explore outside on the grounds of the Blomidon Inn as well. Their gardens are not to be missed. I will leave that for you to discover on your own. Bring your camera because it is photo perfect at every turn.

You may notice that there is a Chefs garden as well. That is to service the restaurant where I enjoyed a fabulous three-course meal my first night. I started with Bacon, Leek & Linguine Carbonara and then moved on to the Ancho Pepper Glazed Chicken Breast. Perfect portion sizes for me and absolutely delicious.

To enjoy with the first two courses I sampled a wine that is on my list to visit tomorrow, Luckett Vineyards.

To finish off the meal I had the Wild Blueberry Tart. Wondering what this cost? It was the Prix Fix menu at $41.50. Pretty reasonable if you ask me and worth every penny.

What a glorious introduction to Wolfville and I slept like a baby my first night at the Blomidon Inn. I am ready willing and able to tackle a day of wine touring and walking through history. Here’s to more adventures.

About Author

Marc Smith is a former event planner turned vagabond adventurer. He loves strong Americano's, great wine, cold beer and zip lining over tree tops.
Formerly of Vancouver, most of Marc's time when not travelling is in Canada's largest city, Toronto. Follow along on his nomad adventures and discover places to stay, things to do and where to eat & drink as he explores the world one city and region at a time.

2 Comments

I spent 3 nights at Blomidon Inn late April 2015, and was captivated at first sight!
Nothing but praise for this charming Inn! Comfortable, unique rooms, interesting public seating areas, incredible views and gardens, and can we talk about the coffee??! Roasted specially for Blomidon Inn, it is spectacular!
We enjoyed fabulous breakfasts, then dinners and desserts to die for! Accompanied by the local wines that are so impressive, and finished with That coffee, we went off to bed and restful sleeps.
I fell in love with everything about Wolfville, longing now for a return stay at the Blomidon Inn and more local exploration.